


soft

by fireangelnblw



Series: valdangelo [1]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan, The Trials of Apollo - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Angst, Bisexual Leo Valdez, Crushes, Crying, Drabble, First Kiss, Gay, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Kissing, Love Confessions, Lowercase, M/M, Sad Leo Valdez, if you can squint you can see that they're gonna fuck after
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-13
Updated: 2019-01-13
Packaged: 2019-10-09 00:38:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,692
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17396798
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fireangelnblw/pseuds/fireangelnblw
Summary: “you ever kissed someone before?”“no. hadn’t thought about it in a while. why?”“just curious.”





	soft

**Author's Note:**

> listen to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfWdQeDdyaQ while reading this, it'll make you actually soft.

“you ever kissed someone before?”

 

nico hummed, pulling out his black ear plugs and turned to his side, facing his friend. leo was laying on his back, reading an old batman issue that was a part of nico’s salvaged comic stack in a corner of his bedroom. he wasn’t looking at nico, but his face was expressionless save for a slight tint of darkness on his cheekbones. nico asked what he said and leo repeated the question.

 

“oh.” nico shifted to place his phone on his nightstand, letting the ear plugs hang loosely from the jack and threaten to hit the ground. “no. hadn’t thought about it in a while. why?”

 

leo took a moment to look at nico, soft brown eyes staring at his own obsidian ones, yet seemingly boring into his entire soul. leo looked back at his comic.

 

“just curious.” he flipped a page.

 

one sentence. nico nodded and grabbed his phone again, plugging his left ear with the bud so he could listen to whatever leo would say on his right. as he scrolled down his phone he felt a small tug in his chest, a low whisper urging him to say something - anything - back. it was a peculiar question, one that needed more background to it than “just curious.” nico let out a sigh and turned back to leo, taking out the bud and trying to look him directly in his eye (which was not focused on him in the slightest).

 

“have you?” nico asked.

 

leo looked startled at first but relaxed, realizing his hypocricy that he would be shocked by his own question. he let his comic fall to his lap and stared at the ceiling.

 

“nah,” he answered with a small laugh to go with it. “i’ve been too busy, ya’know? almost did a few times but never got an actual kiss.”

 

nico nodded again but this time he put his phone back at the stand and stared up at the ceiling too, not in mockery but contemplation. when _was_ the last time he thought about kissing someone? he remembered his crush on his friend percy jackson in freshman year, his secret pining for will solace and jason grace during eleventh. he’s thought about kissing all of them, but he never expected the question to finally come to him in college. it felt stupid that he hasn’t gotten his own first kiss yet. that must be what leo felt at the moment. he didn’t blame him.

 

“hey.” leo turned on his side to face nico, mirroring his previous position. “you said you haven’t thought about it in a while. you had crushes?”

 

“you never knew?” nico was genuinely surprised.

 

“well, i knew about the one you had on percy. is that all?”

 

nico shook his head. “i had one on jason and one on will back in eleventh grade.”

 

“will and jason?” leo laughed. “two in the same year and they’re both blue-eyed blond white boys? a pity.”

 

nico huffed. “okay, master of love: who have you thought about kissing?”

 

leo’s face flushed and he brushed his hand through his dark hair, unsuccessfully as his black ringlets fell back on his face. for a person so blunt and straightforward with his questions he was also easily flustered and shy. it was probably god’s own way of saying, “this boy is too powerful with that attitude. might as well make him a tiny dork.”

 

“well, let’s see,” leo said when his face stopped blushing. “there’s jason, connor, calypso, percy, frank, khione, thalia, octavian, magnus-”

 

“magnus?” nico raised an eyebrow with a small giggle. “he didn’t even go to our school. are those even in order?”

 

“nope!”

 

they both laughed.

 

it felt nice, nico thought. it felt nice to hang out with his friend in his bedroom, the two enjoying each other’s company and doing nothing but stupid shit. talking about old crushes, reading old comic books, listening to old music (though nico would argue that listening to classic emo punk bands is _not_ old school). nico felt at peace when leo was next to him despite his lack of staying still for more than 0.03 seconds, his loud voice that he couldn’t control, his jokes that are either corny as hell or really good despite the little context given, and his happy personality that rivaled anyone else in nico’s life. because leo was sweet, because leo was a good friend.

 

nico couldn’t help but stare. he scanned over leo’s face, admiring his brown skin, rough and acne-ridden along with a thousand moles and a pimple under his left eye. he stared at the curve of his nose bridge and his wild and messy eyebrows that were huge and yet so soft when touched. he saw his hair like ashy smoke, a wildfire nest of darkness seemingly glowing whenever light shined on it. the curls framed his face perfectly. the dark bags under his soft brown eyes that held so much love and care despite all that they have seen, the way they widened when in surprise and the way the hooded whenever he felt sleep crawling on his doorstep. as nico looked all over him he stopped at his lips.

 

lips. they looked chapped and bled slightly from the cold, yet they looked pretty. a delicate pink with brown tints, full and pretty. so, so pretty. nico didn’t know how long he’d been staring.

 

 _fuck, not this again_ , nico screamed internally, exasperated. he hated himself, hated how leo was so beautiful, hated how leo was such a beautiful person. leo was so kind, so thoughtful. he remembered all of his friend’s birthdays, helped his guardians at the waystation safe shelter with the kids staying there, had let nico cry in his arms numerous times and never stopped caring about him. how he was so desperate to have a good life, not be famous or anything but just have a comfortable life that will let him get by: become a mechanic or even an engineer, open his own garage and fix people’s cars. that’s all he wanted.

 

leo came from a horrible background. his father left before he was born, his family was running out of money, his mother died when he was eight, he was kicked out of his aunt’s house, he was put in foster care, he ran away, he ran away multiple times, he was put in a delinquent boarding school. he was abused, neglected, raped, and even nearly killed; yet he still had the heart to care about others, even over his own needs. he loved his friends, he loved the kids, he loved his guardians jo and emmie and he loved…

 

“nico.”

 

nico jumped a bit, eyes darting back to leo’s entire face. he didn’t look weirded out, but nico felt embarassment swell up in him at the thought of leo realizing that he was staring at him. nico didn’t want him to know that on his list of people who he wanted to kiss, leo was a recent addition.

 

“yeah?” nico asked.

 

“can you kiss me?”

 

nico’s brain stopped functioning. his heart stopped beating. the blood in his body was no longer flowing, his lungs weren’t inhaling any air, his body wasn’t moving at all. it felt as if god hit the pause button on the remote, slowing time to a stop and suspending everything in stationary life. nico didn’t know how to react to that question.

 

“what?” he asked, his voice quiet.

 

leo squirmed, as if he was uncomfortable with himself - either by how he phrased it or why he phrased it at all. he avoided nico’s eyes and looked down at the bedsheets. “you’ve never kissed anyone. i’ve never kissed anyone. i just… wanna know how it feels.” his voice was uncharacteristically a whisper.

 

“you want me to kiss you?”

 

“mhm.”

 

nico felt like punching a deity. a deity who decided to read nico’s interpersonal thoughts and go, “why not make this a reality?” nico was being asked to kiss leo valdez, by leo valdez, for leo valdez. nico’s own face heated up and his palms were starting to sweat and what if he messes up-

 

“it doesn’t have to be perfect,” leo mumbled, as if he knew what nico was thinking. “it could just be a small one, just a tiny peck on the lips or somethin’. i dunno.” he shifted under nico’s stare. “you don’t have to, ya know. if you don’t want to. it’s fine, i’ll probably just wallow in self-pity later that i’m even asking you this. i’m just… i don’t…” he sighed. “god, i’m a dumbass.”

 

“… i’ll do it.”

 

leo looked up at him. “you will?”

 

“sure,” nico says. “i’ll kiss you.”

 

leo gives a shy smile and places the comic book on his lap on the carpet under the bed, turning back to face nico. it looked for a moment that he was nervous, unknowing of what to do in this situation he had set up for himself. leo valdez was hardly unknowing of anything.

 

“so… what do i- do you-?”

 

“oh, right.” nico was an idiot for not realizing that leo wanted him to initiate it. he brought up a hand (which he hoped wasn’t shaking as much as his heart was) and placed it on leo’s cheek. he let out a small breath. despite the rough texture, it felt to good to cradle in his hand, so perfect that it fit right into his palm. he unconsciously caressed his face, observing it with peak detail as if he was a painting by a long forgotten artist, so beautiful yet mysterious.

 

leo laughed a bit, nervous. “what am i, an ice sculpture?”

 

nico didn’t respond, only leaning in slightly. leo leaned a little closer to make it easier on him and nico felt his heart flutter. _he wants this, he wants me to kiss him_. as he leaned closer (he’s never been so close to him before, fuck) he could smell leo’s breath, scented like melting candles and a bonfire in the middle of the forest, warm and slightly shaky. nico’s staring at leo’s lips now, closer than ever, and they look soft. he needs one more inch on him to even touch theirs together-

 

what is he doing? why is he doing this? why is he so scared? scared of that looming future in the distance from now? he’s never kissed anyone before, never even thought he’d get a chance to until now. he knows how to kiss from what percy once told him. he doesn’t know if he will do it correctly. is there even a correct way to kiss? what if it’s supposed to be a weird touch of the forehead? oh god, what if he needs to use tongue-?

 

“nico?”

 

“yeah?” nico realized he’s been stuck in this position for a good minute or two.

 

“are you going to kiss me or-?” leo let his sentence drag.

 

nico nodded. “yeah. yeah i am.”

 

he leans in. their lips touch.

 

it’s soft. it’s so unbearably soft that nico’s brain short-circuits for a second. he doesn’t know how to describe it. roasted marshmallows over a fire, the fresh pine of a forest in the middle of nowhere, hot smoke billowing through the skies from a wildfire, the warmth of sweaters and the taste of hot chocolate burning your tongue but not quite. nico closes his eyes as he kisses leo some more, feeling the perfect feeling and tasting the perfect taste. it’s warm, it’s sweet, it feels like _home_ . nico never had a home, or a home that he’s called a home. it’s perfect. kissing leo valdez felt _right_.

 

nico hesitantly leaned away, opening his eyes slowly to see leo chasing nico’s lips as they leave his. he looks so beautiful like this, panting softly, wanting and hoping for another. leo wants more.

 

“wow,” he exhaled. “you seriously never kissed anyone before?”

 

nico laughs. “no.”

 

it’s silent for a few more before leo speaks up again. “one more?”

 

nico answers by leaning in again, this time with leo leaning back in and framing nico’s face with his own hands, delicate but firm as if he was afraid nico was going to leave. nico wasn’t, not when he’s kissed those lips and felt that face and god, he’s falling in love all over again-

 

nico’s climbing over leo’s body, a hand falling to his waist as he bites leo’s bottom lip and kissing him again. leo makes a cute little noise as he massages nico’s face, caressing it with such a touch as if he was porcelain. so gentle, so sweet, so perfect. nico drags up the hand on leo’s hips (they were so small, oh god) and embrace leo’s chest, slowly stroking his shirt and letting it fall back down to his stomach. leo’s moaning softly as nico continues his gestures, one hand dropping to his shoulder and the other reaching up to entangle its fingers in his roots. nico delivers a small peck to leo’s lips as he leans back up.

 

he’s sitting between leo’s legs, one still on the bed with the other hanging off. leo looks so plush and shattered, letting his head lean to the side and stare at the wall, breath coming up as short pants, eyes hooded and cheeks flushed. his shirt is bunching up around his waist, exposing his lower stomach. nico can’t stop his fingers from reaching there and petting it, relishing in leo’s small whimpers from his ministrations. he’s so sensitive, so begging and wanting, biting his lip and shifting his hips. god he’s so pretty, so fucking pretty when he’s utterly destroyed. nico wants to take a picture and hang it on his bedroom wall right now.

 

leo’s eyes look at him, brown and warm and so-

 

tears. there were tears in his eyes.

 

“nico…” he starts, but it cuts off when he suddenly hiccups and a tear escapes his eye. nico’s world stops and soon he’s rushing back, hands framing leo’s face and shit, he did something wrong. he’s brushing away leo’s tears, hoping it wasn’t him who did this. he doesn’t want to be the reason leo cries, the reason why he’s sad, the reason why leo looks so broken right now.

 

“i’m sorry, i’m sorry…” the words rush out like a waterfall, nico connecting their foreheads and blinking out his own worries forming in the shape of his own tears. “i’m so sorry, i did something wrong-”

 

“no, no you didn’t,” leo assures, sobbing slightly and bringing up a hand to nico’s face, catching a tear drop threatening to fall. “i just… i’m just emotional, fuck, um-”

 

“it’s okay,” nico says. “i’m here. i’m right here.” he’s trying not to cry, because there’s still that inner self-loathing in him that says he’s at fault, he’s the reason leo’s crying right now. he needs to leave but he can’t move, not when leo’s like this, crying silently.

 

leo doesn’t speak, only communicating in short hiccups.

 

“i just…” he blinks and wipes his face with his own hands. “i don’t… i don’t want this to be like… a one-time thing and… i like you a lot? i don’t know, i’m just being stupid…”

 

“you’re not stupid,” nico interrupts. he’s feeling his heart swell up in a good way, his body relaxing and his mouth curling into a smile despite him not giving permission. because leo doesn’t want this to be temporary, doesn’t want this to end. he wants nico, he likes nico, he… he loves nico? he loves nico. “i don’t want this to stop after either.”

 

the two look at each other, smiling. suddenly it’s like before this all happened, the two in comfortable silence, laughing at each other’s jokes and contemplating their existentiality crisis. but this is better than conspiracy theories of the world being a simulation, this is better than real life. being with leo was better than nico could ever hope would be. because leo likes him, because leo loves him, and because nico loves him back.

 

leo pokes his nose. “one more?”

 

nico grins. “of course.”

 

he leans back in to the softness.

 

**Author's Note:**

> this was literally written after a fifteen hour flight and out of boredom. plus the valdangelo tag has been dead for an entire week so here i am, barbecue sauce on my titties.


End file.
